


No Choice Without Regrets

by DuskierDawn



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Adventure, F/F, Flashbacks, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Mentions of other characters - Freeform, No Smut, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Sacrifice Arcadia Bay Ending, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Pricefield is not main focus, Series, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-01
Updated: 2017-02-06
Packaged: 2018-09-21 06:44:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9536486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DuskierDawn/pseuds/DuskierDawn
Summary: *MAJOR SPOILERS FOR LIFE IS STRANGE*Three days after a major choice that Max Caulfield was forced to make, life is now completely different from what it was before. Now, it was just her and Chloe, on the run to start over if they wanted to, until Max discovers the past cannot always be erased completely. In an adventure like she had never lived of the weight of pain, the scares the world has to offer, the occasional laugh and protection of her best friend for life, it comes to Max what really burned in her heart that told her what Chloe Elizabeth Price was worth to her world that made her keep her life.





	1. After Everything

**Author's Note:**

> To lovely readers: Although nobody will probably stumble upon this story to actually read it other than my friends, I highly recommend that before you start reading, you finish Life is Strange or watch a play through if you must. This story is the aftermath to an ending of the game, and will be better understood and prevent spoiling the game for yourself if you finish the game. Considering our fandom is pretty small, or at least from what I see, I am not sure how many people will read. But if I see people enjoying it, I'll post more of the series. This is the first fan work I've ever posted, so I know it won't be all that great

> _“I'm always standing on the edge of something bad. And someone like you can make me look the other way, so I don't know how close I am to falling. But I always end up turning my head." -Will Grayson, Will Grayson_

_\- - - -_

_INTRODUCTORY_

“Max… Max! Please- Wake up!” Max heard the crying of a familiar voice as her body was being tugged at by her sweater sleeve. 

  Max’s mouth felt dry and everything was too dark for her to process this all at once. Her eyes opened as she saw Chloe’s tattooed arm practically strangling her as she shook her awake. Max took a loud gasp of breath as she scattered to sit upright. 

  “Jesus, Chloe! What’s wrong?” Max’s heart pound as she breathed heavily.

  “Dude, you were shaking, I swear I didn't know what was fucking happeneing and I-I..” Chloe’s voice cracked to nothing but a whisper. She crossed her arms on the dashboard of her car and dropped her face into them. “God, I’m an idiot, aren’t I?” 

  “No, Chloe,” Max leaned over, setting a hand on her best friend’s shoulder. “I’m okay… I just had a night terror… But it’s over now.”

  Chloe had been worried about Max more than ever these past few days since they left Arcadia Bay… Or at least it’s remains. After losing childhood, love, and memories that became disheveled and dismembered with the town, the two friends had to come to terms with the fact that for now, each other was all they had. It wasn’t just a new page in the book. And it seemed it wasn’t even a new book. It felt like someone ripped up and crumpled up the pages that had writing on them, only leaving what was blank. But how does that happen? How do you forget years of written pages because before your very eyes, it was all ruined? How does a person forget their creation being made for years on end being destroyed? How does a person forget about the parts of their life that are now meaningless because they can not leave your mind? 

  Well… Not everything was meaningless. Chloe and Max were still side by side. Bonded more than ever in their youth. Max was going to make her choice worth it. Chloe was going to make it up to her. Although, the young photographer was not close to being over the situation. She had just had a nightmare that crept up on her, voices asking why she did what she did, why she felt like she did the right thing. It was physically paining. And while Chloe was still feeling the strain of the situation, with everything lost that she couldn’t get back, she began to become more protective of Max, like she had been with her. Every time Chloe felt that her best friend was hurt or in danger, it put nothing but dread on her. Hence what just happened. 

  “God dammit…” Chloe giggled breathlessly to herself, although it wasn’t a giggle of joy, but of sorrow. “I’m becoming a paranoid little shit… I’m so ridiculous."

  “Chloe Price is anything but ridiculous.” Max rubbed her shoulder, seeing her head rise. “I’m grateful you’re looking out for me, but don’t let it be such a big burden on you.”

  “It’s okay, I guess it’s only natural for me to be feeling that way in the situation we’re in… And maybe it’ll help if we don’t have to keep sleeping in my truck every night.” Chloe crossed her arms and slumped in her seat. 

  “Well, we’re scraping by right now, so I think it’s okay to do it for now… But you know… Best not to be thinking about this in the middle of the night… I think we’re both dead tired.” Max pulled back, wanting to go back to sleep. 

  “I’m probably not falling back anytime soon… Screw coffee when anxiety’s on your back…” Chloe’s eyes drifted toward Max. “But you go on ahead… Nothing will happen with me still awake.”

  “I don’t want you to feel groggy in the morning-“

  “I don’t think anything is going to stop it, really.” 

  Max wouldn’t let Chloe grow unhealthy because of a decision she forced herself to choose. She needed her here as long as she could keep her for. Max hopped out the door beside her to her friend’s confusion. As Chloe was about to ask what she was doing, she shut the door and slumped sleepily over to the front. She opened the door and hopped in, scooting beside her best friend. She leaned over from the end of her seat and soothingly rubbed Chloe’s back. 

  “It’s okay, Chloe…” Max with eyelids dropping, softly yawning, was obviously very tired, but couldn’t help but worry. “I’ll stay beside you for tonight if you need it.”

  “No, Max, you don’t have to. I’m fine.” She sighed, lifting her head from the dashboard and crossing her arms. “It’s late, and when it’s late… I get kind of emotional is all…” 

  “But you can’t just _not_ sleep the rest of the night. We need to get a move on in the morning.” 

  “Can I ask you a question?”

  “Ask away.”

  “Why are we rushing? We don’t even know where we’re going yet.”

  “Didn’t we already talk about this? We’re going to go back to Seattle with my parents. I’ll tell them about the hurricane and they’ll have to believe it was a natural disaster-”

  “And that what? For whatever reason _I_ lived along with you and not…” Chloe sighed, pausing for a second before she turned to Max. “The whole thing won’t make sense.”

  “The whole thing _doesn’t_ make sense, Chloe. I fucking caused a time paradox. And obviously I can’t do it again.” Max began to sound frustrated. “And I can’t just outright say something like that to my parents... they'll probably figure I just went crazy after all of this…” 

  Chloe leaned over, throwing her arm around her best friend, keeping a comfortable distance. “We don’t have to  go to your parents right away, you know.”

  “And I’m supposed to leave them thinking I’m dead?” 

  “Max... I think we need some time…” Chloe tried to sound as comforting as possible.

  Max’s head shook with a slight groan. Where the fuck did time go. Where was the time when her biggest worry was if the crap she did for the Everyday Heroes contest was good enough and not if faking her death was a better idea than facing her parents. 

  “Look, just go back to sleep, Max. This is too much shit for one night. My hero needs her rest.”

  _Her hero…_ Max thought. _I’m her… Hero…_

  “Thanks Chloe, but-“

  “Don’t ‘but’ me, hippie. I’ll fall asleep eventually. Don’t worry.” Chloe leaned back, relaxing herself. 

  “Okay… fine.” Max sighed deeply, pressing her head against the window. 

  After three days, Max was starting to process that now was a different life. She was no longer the high school senior she was not so long ago. What the fuck was she going to do with her life? Was she going to go back to Seattle with Chloe and stay with her parents until she figured something out, or is it that she may as well leave everything behind and travel the country with her best friend until they find something normal for themselves? She never had to think so much, and knots were forming in her stomach until she felt weak. Tears began to fog up in her eyes… No, she wasn’t going to cry over this. This was her action, her doing. She knew she had it coming deep down inside. She had to accept that deep down inside, saving Chloe was going to bring them to this. With no place to go, hardly any money left, with nothing but themselves and the clothes on their back. She wasn’t really sure of anything at this point. 

  The only thing she was sure of, she thought as she turned her head over to Chloe, was that she was going to make this worth it to her as much as she could.

  And now she could finally sleep noticing that Chloe was. 

 


	2. As we Run

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm happy to see that plenty of people, for my first post, have enjoyed this so far! This chapter is significantly longer, and hopefully more interesting, which is how I want them to be considering the first chapter was really just an introduction. And just a quick disclaimer: Other than where Max's parents live, any locations named throughout the story are fictional, anything I name that is the same as an existing location or is closely related, is a coincidence. Just to make that clear. Also I will try to make this story so that I do not have to create too many characters to keep it interesting. I'm not completely satisfied with this chapter but hopefully the next one will be better.

  "I wonder if there's a day where we finally stop somewhere instead of just roaming around." Chloe looked out into the road she drove through that was cut through a valley. Max was admiring the small white flowers that hid amongst the blades of grass. 

  "It would be a lot easier if we  _knew_ where we were going." She turned her head from the window. "Too bad we don't have a map." 

  "Unfortunately our phones are thrashed so no luck there." The blue haired girl shrugged. "Otherwise we probably would have one." 

  "And my parents would be calling me a hundred times a minute," Max slumped in her seat as she remembered how she couldn't take a step out of their sight without getting messages upon messages of how they wanted updates on everything, or at least her mom did. Her dad was more laid back, but probably not in this situation. 

  The guilt returned of how she was avoiding her parents for the time being, and possibly for longer than she wanted. She started to wonder, what were they doing right now? Was there any news yet of how the town was left in shambles with not a breath of life? Were her parents already planning her funeral or holding on to hope? She thought that if there was nobody left in Arcadia Bay who lived there, maybe they came to the conclusion she was gone for good. 

  "Hey, come on," Chloe glanced over at Max and saw her expression. "Just don't think about it for a while. You need to relax for a bit. From what I'm seeing, there has to be some town up ahead. And hopefully there's a bathroom not far up there because I hella have to pee." 

  "And I could really use a drink," Max responded. 

  "We really are always opposites, aren't we?" 

  Max responded with a genuine chuckle, something she hadn't really done in a while. Opposites was right. There was this young anxious hipster who let her shyness take over and then right next to her was this don't-take-shit-from-anyone punk. But Max thought that her style was very nice... she took a gaze at her. It was only now she realized she hadn't taken the time to comprehend exactly how different she was. Those short sky blue strands gave a signature look, she really stood out. And it wasn't even just that or the clothes she wore that made her so different from before, but she had really matured over five years from barely a teen to a now adult. It was hard for Max to describe it. Chloe just looked... stunning... and she was perfect like that. 

  Chloe turned and raised an eyebrow at Max, making her think she was unsettled until she smirked at her. "What are you thinking about, Mad Max?" 

  "Nothing, it's just that, between everything that happened, I don't think I really took the time to notice how-" 

  Max's compliment was cut short by a blood-curdling scream from her friend as she looked at the road. Max quickly turned her head, but already saw that a much larger truck had taken up the entire view from the windshield. Before she could react in that moment, they had already both collided. Glass shards bursting from each side, every sound being ear-piercing, Max could hardly see a thing as both of them were being thrown around in their seats. 

  Then that instinct kicked in. 

  That instinct kicked in and all of a sudden, those glass shards flew back, reforming perfectly with not a scratch. The cars moving back each dent unbending cleanly from the accident. With everything back into place, it had never happened. But with the instinct through Max's blood, only she had known that none of that never happened. She did it one last time, but it shouldn't have been the last. 

  Max rewound time once more. 

  Even when Chloe was back to blissfully chatting, unaware of what had just happened, it was like Max could still feel the stinging scratches from the glass on her face that no longer existed. She couldn't even follow her own simple instruction. She had promised herself and Chloe that no matter what their life was to become, for everyone and everything that was to be in it, the one thing that would remain was don't. Rewind. Time. Anymore. But at the same time, this was Chloe, the person she also promised to keep safe no matter what. This time. This one time. It was okay, wasn't it? Could she just get away with it just once? 

  "Dude, Max," Chloe bumped her arm with her elbow. "I've been trying to talk to you for three minutes, what's up with you-" 

  "Chloe, the road!" Max sharply cried out. 

  "Oh shit!" Chloe swerved out of the way as fast as possible once she saw the incoming truck, now at an avoidable distance. She parked on the side of the road, rubbing her face with her hands in that second as she tried to cool off from that scare. 

  "I saw that look on your face," Chloe spoke seeming slightly angered. 

  "What look?" Max felt she knew what she meant, but pretended not to.

  "It's that one where you know what would've happened if you didn't do what you just did." Chloe kept staring out into the road that was now bare. "You did it again didn't you?" 

  "No, I didn't." Max stuttered slightly. 

  "Don't lie to me Max, it may have been five years but I can still recognize Max Caulfield's 'deer-in-the-headlight's' look." She narrowed her eyes at her. 

  "...Hear me out, we both could've died!" 

  "And you chose to fix my mistake?" 

  "Why are you trying to make this my fault?" 

  "I'm not, it's mine obviously! Have you not been able to tell lately why?" 

  "Who exactly has been trying to help you this past week?" 

  The argument broke with silence right after it. They turned away from each other, cooling off as they stared into the afternoon sky. Max knew it wasn't the best thing to do, but it felt like she had no choice. This time of theirs wasn't just going to end so suddenly. The two friends knew that they weren't really mad at each other. 

  "Look, I'm sorry, I think I should have thought more about what you were feeling..." Chloe gestured with her hand. "I'm just... Afraid, you know?"

  "Yeah," Max rubbed her arm and looked down at her feet. "I definitely know... But I think we should just forget what's happened."

  "Seconded." Chloe responded as she continued to drive again. 

  This couldn't happen again. No more screwing around. No matter what she felt, she could not abuse this power anymore. There had to be a way of preventing these things before they occurred. She could still be the everyday hero she once tried to be. But if she wanted to be sure that nothing was to get in her way, she had to be much more alert, much more careful of the two's surroundings. To be what a true everyday hero, it meant that she had to put away the costume that holds the dangerous power and have her true self be her own special abilities.

 - - - - 

  "Aw shit, Max," Chloe nudged her friend's arm. "Think we've found ourselves a place." 

  Max jumped in her seat, inattentive to her surroundings. She looked out through the window to see what looked like a very beautiful sight. Not too far from them down the road, a cluster of tall buildings that reflected the bright sunlight lay. The buildings that normally looked dark has a greenish glow that came from the reflections of the sky. What city was this? She'd never seen it before. For such a well built one, she thought she would've at least seen it once before in her life. 

  "Man, this isn't a town I was thinking," Chloe spoke laughingly through her words. "This is full on Honeymoon-worthy."

  "Uhm, do you think that's such a good idea we go there now?" Max could only notice how much larger the buildings were looking like second by second as they got closer. "We don't have any money really right now, and I have a feeling we could lose what little we have here."

  "Oh but Max," Chloe suddenly sounded deathly exhausted. "We haven't stopped anywhere in days. We could at least enjoy a nice sight! And if anybody dared try and touch us we got my buddy you saved in the back to help."

  Max bit her lip as she gave her friend an unamused look as an oppose to the punk rocker's cocky attitude. She really didn't like Chloe with a gun in her hands, but she wouldn't bring up the past experiences she had with guns that didn't end as successfully as she wanted them to. Hell, Max started to think that some of the moments she had to undo, Chloe didn't even remember. Why in the world did she have to give her gun back? 

  "Hey, you don't look super confident in your best friend," Chloe patted her back, a sarcastically upset tone.

  "Just... try to be careful with how you use it." Max nervously thought of the possible outcomes while she spoke. "Or else I just might have to take it, haha."

  "Max, as long as I have arms I can handle a gun."

  "Whatever, just don't overdo it." 

  It was only a few seconds after this conversation that the two friends found themselves within the civilization. This definitely wasn't Arcadia Bay. The streets were flourished with people walking back and forth. Max's stomach began to turn with the more people she saw walking around. Instead of the young adults her age wearing hoodies and torn jeans, they wore fancy sweaters and slacks. They had to have been just out of school. Compared to herself, Max felt that they were actually much older than her. Though, it wasn't a surprise for her to be thinking that about her peers. Sometimes, she even felt that away about Chloe, with how much she had changed over the years. 

  "These definitely aren't the kind of people we're used to." Max spoke uneasily. 

  "Spiffy clothes don't mean people bite," Chloe tried to keep Max relaxed. "Hey, there's a café right there, now, they'll have both of what we want." 

  "Yeah," Max chuckled to herself, as she looked into the parking lot right behind it. 

  Once they were stopped, Max scoffed as she noticed the truck was left partially on two different spaces, "Okay, you could have at least parked a little straighter than that."

  "Hey, my parking should be as straight as my sexuality shouldn't it?" Chloe hopped out of the car.

  Max stepped out shaking her head at her friend's comment. Chloe noticed her shaming her. "Max, you _know_ that was funny."

  "It..." A smile twitched onto Max's face. "Kind of was, actually."

  "You see? I know how to make you laugh." Chloe impatiently ran ahead of Max. 

  Not wanting to be too far from Chloe in an unfamiliar area, she hurried up and caught up with her just a few seconds after she entered the cafe. It was a neat and small place. Not too many people sat around in booths and there were multiple registers as the counter was circular with multiple cashiers around it and made to look a lot like a bar. Gold hues decorated the walls and ceilings with wooden flooring. There were even murals across the walls. 

  "Sorry, customers only, ma'am," The person behind the counter shrugged.

  "Aw dammit." Chloe crossed her arms.

  "Chloe," Max said sharply before she turned to the man at the register. "she's with me. If I buy a tea, could she use the bathroom?"

  "That works," The man smirked at Max.

  "Thanks, super Max!" Chloe rushed over to the restroom quickly.

Max sat across the bar on a red-cushioned seat and rummaged her pockets for a couple of dollars. She set them on the counter right in front of the man.

  "Just a tea lemonade," She spoke softly.

  "That'll do," The man seemed to have a bright attitude. "say, you aren't from around here are you?"

  "No, actually," Max responded, not expecting to be making conversations. "I'm sure you could pretty much tell from the way I look."

  "Not necessarily," He squinted his eyes at Max. "you see, I've been told I have a sort of gift."

  "What kind of gift?" Max watched as he prepared her tea.

  "A gift... for noticing special people," he winked. Max began to feel a knot in her stomach.

  "I'm not special. I'm just here."  

  "But that's just it," With the way this guy was speaking, Max wondered why he was working in a cafe and not some motivational speaker. " _That's_ how I can tell. People like you don't just come here because they're roaming around."

  "Actually, that kind of _was_ what I was doing." Max turned over to gaze at the murals on the wall. 

  "Well... You may have just stumbled upon this place so suddenly, but..." He set her tea on the table and slid it into her sight. It glistened a bright bronze in the lamp light. "why did you in the first place?"

  Max was silent other than slight stuttering as she grabbed onto the cold cup. "I... I don't-"

  "Hey, you're not giving my friend trouble here are you?" Max slightly jumped when she had barely noticed how close Chloe was to her; she must've seen she was struggling to answer. 

  "Oh, no no! Not intentionally!" The man chuckled, waving his hands to gesture his defiance. "I probably asked some uncomfortable questions, my apologies..."

  As his tone trailed off Max slightly murmured. "Max... It's Max..."

  "Max, nice to meet you," The man maintained his friendly tone. "Call me, Ace! And who's your nice friend here?"

  "Chloe," The blue haired girl responded firmly. 

  "Max and Chloe," Ace smiled. "you know, my friend owns an inn right down the street. Suggesting you need a place to stay, I'm sure she wouldn't mind helping out!"

  "Oh, well that's nice of you, Ace-"

  "We'll check back later with you, since we don't need a place right this second." Chloe set one hand on each of Max's shoulders, almost protectively.

  "Well, just let me know, come back here when you're ready. There's always a room open." The man nodded. "I'll just run this place for the time being. See you girls."

  Once the man paced towards another employee, Chloe slowly loosened her grip on her friend until she completely removed her hands. She sighed, frustratingly, then looking at Max confused.

  "What was Mr. Nice Guy all about?" A tone of mockery came from Chloe as she set her arms across the wooden countertop. "He wasn't hitting on you or anything, was he? Also I got a feeling 'Ace' isn't his real name..."

  "I think he means well," Max watched the ice cubes shift around in her tea. "But he did mention something about me being... _'special'_ solely because we came to this city."

  "Hm, that's really weird." Chloe examined him as he rushed around the work station. Max sipped her concoction of bittersweet and sourness, hoping that he wouldn't see her friend as suspecting of him. "I suggest we head some other part of town and have some fun while we're here."

  "Exactly what fun can we have when we can barely feed ourselves?" Max asked as she stirred the lemon slices with her straw. Hell, she probably shouldn't have even bothered with the drink. 

  "We've done it before haven't we?" Chloe softly bumped Max's chin with her fist. "Also, I think we're in need of a breather, as long as we're gonna be here for the day." 

  "Well, you're right," Max smirked. 

  "Alright, well, what are we waiting for then?" The young punk rocker hopped off of her seat and gripped Max's free hand. 

  Max kept a good hold not to drop her cup as she was eagerly dragged out of the cafe. It was the first time in a while that her heart bumped louder out of excitement. This drive of theirs was finally starting to feel more of an adventure. It was at least for a day that she could make better of the situation. And as she turned back the split second before the door closed behind her she noticed Ace from across the room flashing her one last welcoming grin. She smiled slightly back but focused more on running off with Chloe for that moment. 


End file.
